With both South Africa and Kenya having already qualified from Pool A for the Semi-Finals following respective victories against Namibia. The two sides have played some classic matches over the years, none more than the 2-1 victory for South Africa at the 2015 Greenfields African Championships. Both teams were keen to secure top spot and the favourable draw in the Semi-Finals. For South Africa the match marked goalkeepers 50th cap for the country. Kenya started the game a little bit faster than the South Africans and won an early penalty corner. What would become a theme of the game on an inconsistent turf was the opportunity was lost. But it hardly mattered, and Kenya created another chance from the resultant play which Festus Onyango should have done better with. South Africa then created arguably the finest opportunity of the opening interchanges when a ball fell to Keenan Horne. The opportunity looked like a replica of his opportunity against Germany at the Tokyo Olympics, but it was well saved by Shidogo in the Kenyan goal. A brilliant defensive block denied Brad Sherwood his third international goal after a scintillating run by the South African co vice-captain Bili Ntuli. South Africa and Kenya were awarded a number of penalty corners, but the titanic chess match played out as a goalless first half, much like a match between two teams already qualified for the semi-finals. The second half saw South Africa take the lead, which was probably deserved on the balance of play. Keenan Horne called for a quick ball from the sideline that caught the Kenyan defenders napping and a selfless ball to Bili Ntuli left the striker a simple job of tapping in. Ntuli and Spooner, a combination that works well for Harvestehuder in Germany, worked again for the South Africans as Spooner fired in a pinpoint cross and Ntuli was on hand to steer it home to give the South Africans a 2-0 lead. With the number of penalty corners being given away, it felt like one would eventually go in for one of the teams. And to the disappointment of the South Africans, it was the Kenyans who scored it. Captain Constance Wankgura fired it past Siya Nolutshungu to set up a grandstand finish. But rather than ending in a storm the game petered out with errors more telling than moments of brilliance. As a result, South Africa will now watch the action tomorrow to find out who they take on in the Semi-Finals on Saturday, while a date with Egypt is looming for the Kenyan Men. Tim Drummond, captain of South Africa. “Its always a physical game against Kenya. They are fit and a good team. We pride ourselves on our defence we will look at the video afterwards and see the areas that we need to improve. We always want to score goals and we will see different things we can do in the Semi-Final on Saturday.’

South Africa took on their Southern African counterparts Namibia on day 2 of the 2022 African Cup of Nations in Accra, Ghana. With both sides having won their opening games, a victory for the South Africans would secure a semi-final spot thanks to Zimbabwe’s victory over Uganda. South Africa started the game with good determination and looked more settled on the pitch after struggling in their opening match. Lilian du Plessis put the South Africans ahead as she continues a remarkable goal scoring record at the Continental Championship. The South Africans were made to toil for their second, which eventually came from a penalty corner which was not cleared. Stephanie Botha reacted first and with a low shot fired her first International Goal into the bottom right corner. As coach Inky Zondi was preparing his half time talk, he had to probably change a few sentences though when Tarryn Lombard added the third for South Africa, her second of the tournament and put a bit of gloss onto the scoreboard at the break. South Africa struck the first blow of the second half when Nomnikelo Veto reacted first to a loose ball and assisted Tegan Fourie, who would not miss. 4-0 to the defending champions. If the Namibians were hoping for the barrage to stop, they would be left hopeless as Lombard popped up with a clinical display that gave the Namibians no chance. It was Nomnikelo Veto who made it six of the best when she finished after Robyn Johnson’s shot was saved from close quarters. Although South Africa were still able to win several penalty corners in the last few minutes of the game they were unable to convert any further opportunities and ultimately the match finished 6-0 to the South Africans. As a result of the victory, coupled with Zimbabwe’s win, South Africa are now guaranteed of a place in the semi-finals and their quest to qualify for the FIH Hockey World Cup continues. The team will still have to finish the group stage when they take on Uganda on Thursday at 19:00 South African Time. Phumelela Mbande, captain of the South African team, shared her thoughts on the match. “We were a lot more intentional and ruthless today. We try to improve game on game and our execution was far better. We will continue to learn as we progress through the tournament and look to deliver on our potential!” AFCON 2022 – Day 2 Results Women Pool A South Africa 13-0 Namibia Zimbabwe 5-0 Uganda Pool B Nigeria 2-1 Zambia Kenya 0-5 Ghana (Kenya Forfeit the game) Source: SAHockey.co.za